TOW the Janice Thing
by AEM77
Summary: AU of how Janice's interest in the gang's romantic entanglements might have gotten Chandler and Monica together sooner. Set in season 3 after Chandler and Janice have broken up. Timeline is a little fudged and presumes everyone is single.
1. Chapter 1

"So I think we should do it," Phoebe begins with absolutely no segue in their conversation. Monica twists in her seat where she's been nestled into Chandler's side to meet his eyes, which not surprisingly are sparkling with amusement. After a quick grin to her, he jumps in, "Absolutely. Me too."

"Well of course you'd want to," Phoebe says dismissively. Chandler's expression goes from amused to confused in an instant as he finds her gaze once more to mouth an exaggerated but silent, "What?"

Her own barely contained amusement grows as Joey sitting beside her on the other end of the couch of Central Perk chimes in with his own, "I'm in." Clearly Joey has no idea what he's committed himself to, but just as obviously he's misinterpreted Chandler's assent as a sign that he should. He nods resolutely at the rest of the group with feigned confidence.

"Phoebe," Ross begins now sitting opposite her at the small café table, "No one has any earthly idea what you are talking about." He looks for confirmation from the others, but Monica and the rest of them just stare back. Sure they haven't got a clue either but it would be just like Ross to ruin the fun just a few moments too soon. After a beat though he drops his earlier pompous tone and posture slumping down and adding, "Oh what the heck, I'm in too."

"Yippee!" Phoebe claps. Then turning to Monica she asks, "What do you say Monica? Are you game?"

Her reply is cut short though by Rachel who appears behind the couch at just that moment to interject, "Game for what? What's going on?"

"You know," Phoebe says pausing just long enough for them all to exchange baffled looks that fully express that they indeed do NOT know. "Janice's thing," she attempts to clarify.

At this everyone, Monica included, spin around to look at Chandler as though he could somehow throw some light on the mystery.

"Oh. My. God." Chandler exclaims in his best Janice impersonation, "I have NO idea what you're talking about."

"You know, the thing about us all having sex with each other."

Now, again as one, their eyes all swing back to Phoebe who smiles happily in return completely nonplussed.

"Excuse me?" Monica asks. She's pretty sure she would have remembered that conversation.

"You know," Phoebe continues, "when she asked if any us ever messed around…three boys, three girls, hanging out all the time. It got pretty awkward there for awhile and it got me thinking that we should all, you know, just do it. Get it out of the way."

"Hey, that's how most of the women I sleep with phrase it too."

She along with the others grin at Chandler's self deprecating remark though she thinks she may be the only one among them to realize how uncomfortable the mention of Janice's name has made him. He'd gone from relaxed and sprawled on the sofa to fidgety and tense in seconds.

"Well, I've already slept with Ross," Rachel begins pragmatically clearly accepting Phoebe's insane proposition as decided. "So that would just leave Chandler and Joey."

Monica is about to jump in and put an end to this terrible idea before it can even begin when Rachel's words seem to get stuck in her head on repeat. _Chandler and Joey. Chandler and Joey._ It had been a really, really long time since her last time. And Joey and the lemonade incident had been the first thing that had come to mind when Janice had made her comments. _Chandler and Joey._ Would it be such a bad thing to use her friend for sex? Joey was… What was Joey? A friend obviously. A good friend. Not someone she could see herself with romantically, but maybe right for a quick fling. She had been very attracted to him that first day they'd met.

She's so busy with her thoughts that she realizes a bit too late that the others have been busy negotiating partners.

"Well Monica's my sister so that is obviously out. And Rachel and I have already…" Ross crosses and uncrosses his legs physically struggling for the right description of what he and Rachel have done. "Made love." He finally asserts looking at Rachel apologetically. "So that just leaves Phoebe."

"What do you mean, 'just leaves Phoebe'?" Phoebe asks affronted.

"Nothing bad," Ross deflects. "I just mean Monica, Rachel, and I are one person short obviously and because of mine and Rachel's past I'm only going to get to sleep with one new person. It seems kinda unfair," he pouts.

"Okay," Phoebe concedes, "that IS a little unfair."

They sit in silence awhile. She imagines that her friends, like her herself, are feeling a strange mix of both relief and disappointment in the end of Phoebe's strange but intriguing proposition.

However, just as Monica begins to search for a new topic of conversation, Phoebe exclaims loudly, "I got it! We'll all just choose one. We'll just start with one person. Ross, you're with me."

"Okay," Ross agrees with equal parts fear and excitement.

"Monica," Phoebe continues all business-like, "who do you want? Chandler or Joey?"

 _Chandler or Joey._

"Well not Chandler," Monica huffs with a laugh. She turns again to share another look with her friend, but rather than seeing her own amusement reflected in his eyes he just looks embarrassed and maybe even kind of hurt.

Before she can start to figure out what Chandler might be feeling, Rachel surprises them all by announcing, "So Chandler's with me."

"What?!" Monica asks aghast and only realizing a moment later that her reply was in stereo with Ross supplying an astonished "What?!" of his own.

"While I'm sure that I could provide you with an evening of mediocre lovemaking that would slightly joggle your world, you really don't need to do that Rach," Chandler begins.

"Well I want to," Rachel admits nervously dutifully scratching a patch of the sofa with her thumbnail and looking anywhere but at Chandler.

"Okay, great." Chandler says miserably.

Monica strains to get a good look at Chandler, trying to read what emotions she might find on his face, but he's completely moved his body protectively huddling over the arm rest of their shared sofa. It's only when she feels the cushions shift slightly that she remembers she has bigger problems than what Chandler may be feeling. Finally turning her attention to the other end of the couch she finds Joey giving her his best come-hither stare.

"How you doin'?"


	2. Chapter 2

Monica is just finishing her shower when she hears a knock at the door. Knowing Phoebe and Rachel are in the apartment she ignores it in favor of surveying herself in the mirror. As she busies herself with her make-up she hears her friends' voices from the living room.

"What's that noise," Phoebe asks distractedly, in the middle of writing a song Monica thinks may be about the pancakes they'd had for breakfast based on Pheebs' earlier request for a word to rhyme with syrup.

"Hmm, I don't hear anything," Rachel replies.

"There it is again!" Phoebe exclaims as the knocking intensifies.

"Oh yeah," Rachel agrees thoughtfully, "I hear it now. It sounds kind of familiar."

With an exaggerated eye-roll to herself in the mirror, Monica slips on her robe and hustles out from the bathroom and towards the front door. "It's knocking, you dopes!" She yells over her shoulder while swinging the front door open.

To her surprise, she finds Chandler at her doorstep nervously shuffling from foot to foot.

"Hey," he addresses her forehead, "can we come in?"

She's about to ask who 'we' is and why he's knocked on her door for the first time in years, when Joey comes rushing up behind him answering both questions for her.

"Don't mind him," Joey explains heading directly to the fridge and peering at her food selection. "He's just freaking out about the sex thing still."

"I am not freaking out," Chandler protests clearly agitated.

"Oh. It's okay, honey. No one's going to make you do anything you don't want to do," Rachel promises rising from her seat at the table to put a comforting hand on Chandler's shoulder.

At the contact, however, Chandler gives a panicked yelp and jumps hastily out of her grasp. After taking a moment to compose himself, he reluctantly concedes, "Yeah. Okay. I guess I am freaking out a little about the sex thing."

Monica half expects him to jump again as she puts her own hands on his shoulders, but is pleased when he allows himself to be docilely led to the living room where she deposits him into her armchair and perches herself beside him. They are all beginning to congregate around the coffee table voicing their reservations about the plan they'd hatched the day before at the coffee shop, when Ross enters the apartment (not bothering to knock she notices- it's no wonder Rachel and Phoebe had forgotten what that sounded like).

"What's up?" He asks them all, draping his coat over one of the dining chairs and stepping into the room.

"Chandler's freaking out about the sex thing," they all reply in unison.

Chandler rallies a bit from the chair where he's been sulking to give a weak wave to Ross before slumping down once more.

"Yeah. About that," Ross begins coming to join Joey and Rachel on the couch and jumping immediately into his own misgivings.

"No!" Phoebe admonishes loudly effectively silencing the others. "No, no, no! We are not backing out of this, you guys!"

Monica takes a quick peek at Chandler and feels a rush of pleasure to find he's looking back at her, a look of comical terror on his face in response to Phoebe's enthusiasm. Happily she scoots from her position on the armrest onto Chandler's lap and affectionately tosses her arm around his back before turning her attention back to Phoebe.

"Don't you get it?" She demands. "This tension we're all feeling is sexual!" She discards the guitar she's been cradling in her lap to kneel along the coffee table. "It's like this," she attempts to explain removing and waving the silk scarf from her neck maniacally at them all. "Imagine this scarf is a washcloth."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Joey interrupts. "What kind of washcloth?"

"Does it matter?" Ross asks.

"Well yeah," Joey counters. "I like the cotton terrycloth kind" In response to their incredulous stares he justifies, "What? Anything too abrasive gives me hives!"

"This is true," Chandler confirms.

Phoebe looks blankly at Joey for a beat before jumping right back into her analogy. "The washcloth is damp. Damp! And it's starting to get mildew-y." She holds the scarf to her nose and makes a gagging sound, supposedly for dramatic effect.

"Are we all the washcloth here?" Ross asks looking for all the world like he is truly trying to follow Phoebe's insanity. "Or the mildew?"

"We're the washcloth, obviously," Phoebe clarifies with an eye roll to express just how obvious this should be to them all. "The tension is the mildew." She emphasizes her last point by fluttering her scarf once more in all their faces.

"I'd like to go on record if I may, as stating that I am not a fan of this metaphor." Chandler whines as Phoebe dangles the scarf in his face.

Monica gives Chandler's shoulder a small squeeze in solidarity before interjecting in the hopes of getting whatever Phoebe is trying to tell them back on track, "So what does any of this have to do with the sex thing, Pheebs?"

"We have to wring the washcloth!" She explains feverishly twisting her scarf again and again. "That's the sex!"

"That's the sex?" Chandler grimaces. "Yikes, good luck with that one, Ross."

Monica notes Ross is looking a little pale as he watches Phoebe's surprisingly strong grip wringing her scarf in knots again and again.

"You know what?" Rachel begins rising up from her place on the couch to sit on the other side of the armchair and resting a hand on Chandler's forearm, "I think Phoebe's right."

They all look at her in shock and Monica can feel Chandler shift in their shared seat not so subtly inching away from Rachel.

"You do?" Monica asks feeling irritated. She's been most surprised by Rachel's enthusiasm for this enterprise from the start and can't help but feel annoyed by Rachel's strange and sudden interest in sleeping with Chandler. Of course their friend is funny, kind, loyal, handsome even, but he's not someone they should be sleeping with. "Why do you want to have sex with Chandler so badly anyway," Monica pouts.

"Oh. And that's so inconceivable, is it?" Chandler says shifting their bodies a bit so they're facing one another in the armchair.

"Yes!" She snaps back at him. His face goes from angry to hurt and back to angry again in a matter of seconds as he pops up from the chair leaving her to fall awkwardly into the space he's vacated. "Well, lucky for you Monica, you don't have to have sex with me. I'm with Rachel, remember?" He makes a show of walking around the back of the chair to stand next to Rachel and deliberates a moment before tossing an arm around her shoulders.

"Fine with me," she retorts standing herself and coming to sit next to Joey on the couch, "because I'm with Joey." She makes a big show of throwing her arms around an uncomfortable looking Joey. "C'mere Joey," she growls as he makes a move to wiggle out of her tight grip.

"Okay, but this is supposed to be fun, right?" Joey asks miserably.

"Oh yeah," Monica growls angrily. "Tons of fun."


	3. Chapter 3

"What is your problem?" Rachel asks angrily the moment Monica shuts the door on a retreating Phoebe. It hadn't taken long after her and Chandler's outbursts for their group to disband and now the two roommates are left alone for the first time that morning.

"What are you talking about?" Monica laughs falsely busying herself with straightening the already well-organized dishes on the kitchen counter. What is her problem? She's not really sure. Obviously she's upset about Phoebe's plan and all this pairing up that they've been discussing. But what about it specifically is bothering her is still a bit of a mystery. She'll be damned though if she's going to let on to anyone how much this is bothering her, even Rachel.

"What was all that with Chandler?" Rachel persists. "Because if you're jealous or something, you know I'll back off."

Monica laughs at this in earnest. "Jealous?" She asks incredulous. "Of Chandler and you?" Rachel just nods as if this weren't a totally ridiculous accusation. "Are you crazy?"

"Oh come off it, Monica," Rachel replies much softer now. She sits down at the dining table and gives Monica an appraising look before saying very carefully and slowly, "Would that really be so strange? You guys are best friends. You're always touching and cuddling and stuff. Are you sure nothing's going on?"

She has literally never considered the possibility of anything between herself and Chandler since they'd become close friends, which in and of itself actually seems a little odd. Monica has never been one to shy away from daydreaming about the men in her life, but until now her psyche had considered Chandler as off limits. She'd never considered why before.

"There is nothing going on between me and Chandler," Monica asserts a little too forcibly. Is this the truth? She's not so sure anymore. "He's like a brother to me," she continues overcompensating. This is definitely not true, but it seems to throw Rachel off the scent.

"Oh, okay. I get that," Rachel acknowledges. She considers for a minute then continues, "So you don't mind if he an I," she wiggles her fingers suggestively and grins, "Right?"

"Not at all," Monica trills wildly. Also not true. She's not sure why but the idea of her friends together is eating her up inside. Rachel looks a little unconvinced, so Monica continues clarifying, "I just didn't think you thought of him that way. I'm surprised. That's all."

"I don't really," Rachel begins. Monica feels authentically pleased with this pronouncement until Rachel continues, "but I'd be lying if I hadn't thought about it."

"Really?" Outwardly Monica feigns surprise, but inwardly she realizes how stupid she's been. Did she really think that no one else was going to notice how funny and charming Chandler was, how cute he could be, how blue his eyes were.

Rachel tentatively begins, "You know I never told you this before, but…" she pauses in her admission nervously fidgeting with the salt and pepper shakers on the table. Monica has the comical urge to jump across the table and put her hand across her friend's mouth. She's not sure what Rachel is about to say but she has the distinct feeling she's going to want it unsaid.

"…but, Chandler and I made out once." Rachel looks up shyly a little blush spreading prettily across her face.

"What?!" Monica hopes she sounds merely surprised and not as gutted as this information is making her feel. Rachel and Chandler! A billion questions bubble up in her, but she can only manage to spit out the basics: "When? How? Why?"

There is a ringing in her ears now as she struggles to hide the sudden panic that spreads through her body. She really doesn't want to hear about anything that might have happened between her friends but she uses all of her will to attend to Rachel anyway realizing she has to know. Her two best friends! How could neither of them have told her this before? When did it happen? How did it happen? Why? The last question seems particular important to her though she's not sure what answer she's hoping to hear.

"It was back in high school," Rachel explains with a girlish shrug that makes her appear younger and more naïve than she has in years. "When we visited Ross at NYU. Do you remember that trip?"

Monica does remember that trip, vividly. It just happened to be the night of her first real kiss and her recollections have always focused on those magical minutes in her brother's dark dorm room. But now looking at Rachel telling the events from her perspective, she's beginning to remember other long forgotten details- Chandler and his horrible hair, his confusion but ready acceptance of her animosity and name-calling. Over the years as they'd become friends she's all but forgotten her early crush and then bitterness towards him. She's trying to remember if she'd noticed any special connection happening between him and Rachel that night but she's coming up blank.

"I don't remember you guys even hanging out that much," Monica interrupts hoping that Rachel doesn't pick up on the whine in her voice. _This shouldn't bother you!_ She reminds herself.

"It happened after you passed out," Rachel explains, "It was nothing really. But I do remember he was a really good kisser. It surprised me actually."

Monica is still resigning herself to the knowledge that Chandler is a good kisser and that Rachel knows this first hand when Rachel continues apologetically, "There's some more too."

 _Oh God, they've slept together already_ , Monica thinks in a panic, dread filling her as she quickly stands up and begins pacing a bit in the kitchen. Rachel is beginning to look at her quizzically though so she makes a show of fetching the wine bottle from the fridge again to refill their glasses.

"Do you remember that time we bumped into one another at Central Perk back when it was that bar?"

Monica does remember, but they'd barely been speaking back then. What does that have to do with Rachel and Chandler sleeping together at some college party?

Rachel must mistake Monica's confused face for a lack of memory because she continues, "You know, you and Chandler were playing pool and I was there with my girlfriends. It was right after Barry and I got engaged."

Monica nods slowly in relief. Apparently whatever 'more' is, it isn't going to be Rachel and Chandler going at it on a pile of coats in the NYU dorms.

"Well, I must of already at some level have realized I didn't want to marry Barry because I spent half that night," Rachel pauses here looking embarrassed before soldiering on, "I spent half the night fantasizing about Chandler and me," Rachel trails off wistfully, "and that pool table."

She breaks a moment, composing herself, before continuing, "And it's dumb, I know. I mean its Chandler for crying out loud. Chandler!" she emphasizes with a laugh. "But maybe Phoebe's right about getting it out of the way, you know? Then maybe I can stop having those dreams about him and the coffee table at Central Perk."

"Dreams? As in plural?" Rachel had told Monica about the first time she'd dreamt of Chandler, but she hadn't realized there'd been more.

Rachel nods her head looking simultaneously ashamed and pleased. "And they are some dreams, let me tell you."

Unfortunately for Monica, she learns that night, waking sweaty and sated with her friend's name of her lips, that they are indeed.


	4. Chapter 4

Stepping into the apartment, Monica finds Rachel and Joey sitting at the dining room table huddled together in intense conversation. She just manages to make out Rachel's "…was totally freaking out!" before the two friends notice her entrance.

Though she gets the distinct feeling she's interrupted something not meant for her ears, Rachel recovers nicely throwing out a casual, "Hey, Monica! You're home early." Joey, however, all but confirms her suspicions by fidgeting at the table and unnecessarily adding, "We were just hanging out here. Talking about nothing special."

"Oh yeah? So who totally freaked out?" She asks, hoping she sounds nonchalant rather than burning with curiosity.

"You! When you freaked out about my drink the other night. When I didn't use a coaster." Rachel says this all a bit too quickly and Monica has the impression she's manufacturing this version of the conversation on the spot.

"Right, right," Joey nods in earnest agreement. "Rachel was telling me all about how you really lost it."

The two exchange a series of looks that Monica would find comical if she weren't dying to know what her friends were up to before Joey continues, "In fact, I may just take this frosty beer next door," he indicates the bottle he's just opened to her as he rises from his seat, "just to be safe."

"I'll join you, Joey," Rachel says eagerly jumping up as well and giving Monica an apologetic shrug. "Just to make sure you don't forget the coasters over there as well."

As the door closes on her friends, Monica collapses on the couch, mind racing. Normally weird behavior like this from her friends wouldn't phase her. All six of them were as likely as not to be involved in some bizarro high jinks from time to time. But with Phoebe's sex games lurking in the background and her own inner turmoil of the last week, she's more curious than usual as to what her friends might be up to. Whose freak out could they have been discussing?

Her mind immediately goes to Chandler: a quick journey since he's exactly the person she's been fixated on since her little talk with Rachel.

Somehow hearing of Rachel's interest in Chandler has opened a locked door in her psyche and years of longing have been unleashed. The problem with Chandler is that Monica knows exactly how his touches feel, how it feels to have him whispering in her ear, to feel his kiss on her cheek and hair. It isn't hard to shift those kisses to her lips and body. These days a simple remembrance of cuddling on the sofa at the coffee shop turns sensual causing her skin to flush and her mouth to run dry. With other men, she's always had to fabricate the feel of those caresses and kisses in her daydreams. It's only now that she's realizing it has always been Chandler's touch her dreaming mind had supplied.

Unfortunately thought her biggest problem is that her budding attraction to Chandler is the least of her problems. If this was simply some lust thing, she could just take Phoebe's advice, jump his bones, and be done with this agony. No, the worst thing is not that she wants Chandler- and she is finally ready to admit that she does indeed want him, and badly- No, the worst thing is that she thinks she knows why she's been denying her attraction for so long.

The truth is that she likes Chandler. She likes him a lot. There isn't anyone in the world she has more fun with and there isn't anyone in the universe she'd rather weather the rough times with. He's her best friend and she knows that she's his best friend too. Of course, all six of them are best friends and she loves them all dearly, but with Chandler there is a connection she can't claim with the others. Rachel's probably her greatest friend and she tells her everything- well almost everything, she hasn't bridged this particular topic of conversation with Rachel for obvious reasons- but when she does there is always the need to explain what she's feeling and why. With Chandler explanations are never necessary. He always knows how she's feeling, sometimes before she knows herself. Her brother is her next closest confidant, but Ross, like most siblings probably, had chiseled out a box years ago that he thinks Monica ought to fit in and never really sees her for who she is should she happen to act against his expectations. But with Chandler she's never felt the restrictions of his expectations. On the contrary she can't think of anyone who gives her more and expects less in return. She thinks this is probably true of most of his relationships and it eats her up inside to realize she's only now appreciating this facet of her friend's character.

Monica's isn't naïve. She doesn't believe in soul mates or fairy princes, not really. But she is romantic and she believes in happy endings. She's spent a fair deal of her life imagining what her future would look like: the guy, the wedding, the house, the kids, all of it. Never in a million years did she imagine Chandler as her future. The guy was always a Richard type, mature, successful, put together. When she and Richard had split she'd been devastated. But she realizes now it was less about losing Richard himself, though she'd cared for him deeply, and more about losing a piece of the future she'd planned for herself.

But Chandler isn't a piece of her puzzle. A Richard could be replaced by a Matthew or a David, the reception dinner at the conservatory for a luncheon at the country club. She could even swap the three kids and dog for twins and a cat. But she can't replace Chandler. Losing him wouldn't be like losing a nice accessory she's always wanted. It would be like losing a piece of herself. She's not sure she could risk that and even less sure that he'd want to anyway.

If she's being honest this is really the source of her misery. When she's not indulging in a fantasy world where they're together, Monica tortures herself imagining a world where he's with Rachel. She'd been really and truly amazed by Rachel's interest but the more she thinks about it the less astounding it all seems. Chandler isn't really Rachel's type, but then neither were Barry or Ross. He's handsome and kind and funny and really what woman wouldn't want a guy like that? And despite his claims of immaturity and being afraid of commitment, Chandler is really much more interested in relationships than he lets on. Didn't he give up responsibility-free sex with Aurora because he wanted more? Didn't he look past all of Janice's many irritating habits to try to have something real with her? Chandler isn't afraid of commitment, he's afraid his love won't be reciprocated. And here she's been, supposedly his best friend, all but confirming his fears and insecurities all these years.

She's still sitting at the couch wallowing in her unhappiness later in the evening when Rachel comes back from across the hall. She looks sadly over her shoulder and her despair must be written all over her face because Rachel immediately comes over to join her on the couch and takes her in her arms. With her face hidden in Rachel's sweater it is much easier to let the tears that have been threatening all week fall.

"Oh honey," Rachel says with concern. "What's the matter? Is everyone okay? What is it?"

Monica takes a break from her sobs to assure Rachel that everyone is fine before laying her head on Rachel's lap and resuming her crying.

"Is it work?" Rachel asks and Monica can guess from the tone of her voice that Rachel already knows the answer to that question.

Keeping her head down, Monica shakes her head slowly.

"Is it about Chandler?" Rachel asks softly gently stroking Monica's hair from her forehead.

"No!" Monica replies panicked. She's not sure how her friend has picked up on the crux of the matter so quickly but she feels a flash of embarrassment. She'd rather not have Rachel's pity right now.

But Rachel clearly isn't buying Monica's denials as she just continues to stroke her hair and says sadly, "Oh honey. I'm so sorry. This is all my fault."

It kind of is, Monica thinks. Though really she has no one to blame but herself and she doesn't want to be the thing that stands between her two friends' happiness if this thing with them should work out. So she stays quiet trying to absorb as much comfort from her friend as she can while she still can. She's so wrapped up in her thoughts that she doesn't realize Rachel's still speaking.

"I told Joey we were laying it on too thick but he thought you needed more of a shove than a little push."

"What?" Monica asks sitting up confused.

"The Chandler thing," Rachel explains kindly taking Monica's hands in her own. "Joey and I just thought you could use a little perspective, help you see what we all see."

"I don't understand," Monica begins though she thinks she may be starting to figure things out. Her tears have dried and she's even starting to feel a small smile tug at her lips.

"We set you up, Mon," Rachel says beginning to smile herself. "To make you realize how you feel about Chandler."

"And how is that?" Monica asks smiling openly now.

"You love him," Rachel says simply.


	5. Chapter 5

"I do not!" Monica outwardly protests all the while internally realizing that she so, so does.

"You do. You totally do!" Rachel echoes her thoughts. Monica briefly reflects that the substance and style of their argument is not unlike the numerous juvenile fights they'd had as girls growing up. She guesses all six of them are pretty immature at the end of the day. Chandler's just a little more self-cognizant of the fact than the rest of them.

"Yeah, we'll you set me up," Monica accuses hoping to distract herself from Rachel's use of the 'l' word.

Just then there is a quick rap on the door followed by Joey who freezes momentarily on his route to the fridge taking in the picture of the two friends on the couch. "Oh hey, you guys," he begins falsely cheerful, "I just finished talking with Chandler about your hot date this weekend, Rach. He's really excited."

"You set me up!" Monica reproaches at the same time as Rachel confirms this with her own brief, "She knows."

"Oh, good," Joey answers in relief. "In that case, Chandler is terrified to even be in the same room with you," he says with a nod to Rachel, "and hasn't come out of his room since I talked about wanting to see that red lacy underwear of yours on our date," he finishes with a wave to Monica.

"How do you know about that underwear?" Monica demands scandalized.

"Maybe I peeked in your underwear drawer. So sue me," he admits sounding not the least bit sorry. "You should be thanking me, anyway," he continues sitting at the dining table and tucking into a large sub sandwich. "I'm just helping you get together with the greatest guy ever."

Monica acknowledges the truth of this and inwardly feels a great rush of gratitude to Joey for his unwavering love and support of Chandler. While she and the others had been selling him short for years, Joey has always been in Chandler's corner.

"Thanks, I guess," Monica concedes. "But I'm still confused on some stuff. How did you guys know how I felt about Chandler," she carefully side-steps the word 'love', "when I didn't know myself?"

Rachel and Joey share a smile for a moment before Rachel answers, "You were pretty obvious, Mon."

"Yeah," Joey readily agrees. "After you were both single, after he and Janice broke up and you and Richard split, you guys were all over each other."

Monica looks aghast at her friends. She knows that she and Chandler both spent a lot of time together after their break ups but she doesn't recall any conscious effort to be physically close to him. He made her happy. He cheered her up. It was just the natural thing to do, to seek him out when she needed comfort.

"Mm-hmm," Rachel confirms. "You guys have always been touchy-feely but lately you've been taking it to a whole new level."

Despite herself, Monica shivers a little at the idea of Chandler and taking things to new levels.

"And then when Phoebe did her whole Janice thing and you were all, 'well anyone but Chandler'," Rachel sing-songs in a rather unflattering impression of Monica, "we sort of figured it was time for us to intervene."

"The lady doth protest too much, methinks," Joey laughs to himself while the girls just look at him stupefied.

"What? I did Shakespeare in the Park last year!" He explains.

"Alright, alright," Monica begins preparing herself for exposing her deepest insecurity to her friends, "Let's just say for the sake of argument that you're right and I do," she pauses here doing her best to compose herself, "love Chandler. How can you be sure he feels the same way about me?" She hopes her friends don't hear the fear and vulnerability in her voice.

To her dismay they both break out laughing.

"What?" She asks horrorstruck. "What is it?"

"Seriously?" Rachel asks in amusement. Then noting Monica's seriousness, she composes herself enough to explain, "Monica, Chandler is crazy about you."

"What?" Monica huffs in dismissal even as her heart is soaring. "No he isn't. Is he?"

Both of them just nod solemnly at her.

"Since when?" she asks.

"Well let's see," Joey begins. "When did you two meet?"

"Thanksgiving, 1987." Monica answers only slightly regretting how quickly she's provided her answer. The truth is, she's been going over the early days of her relationship with Chandler like homework before a big exam.

"Yeah," Joey replies. "So sometime around then."

"No way," Monica argues. "He would have said something. Wouldn't he? Why wouldn't he?" She's rambling but her heart and mind are racing. Why wouldn't Chandler make a move if he cared about her the way her friends seem to think he did?

"Well," Joey begins, ticking off his arguments on his fingers, "This is Chandler we're talking about," he demonstrates his pointer finger. "He's terrified of beautiful women," Joey raises his middle finger to join the first.

"All women, I'd say," Rachel jokes before seeing Monica's resentful glare.

"He's Chandler," Joey continues, "so he hates himself," he raises his ring finger, "and thinks he's undeserving of love," Joey finishes with his pinkie.

"Oh, oh," Rachel jumps in brandishing her full five fingers, "and you've always gone out of your way, especially as of late, to make a big deal about how you didn't feel that way about him."

Rachel's pride in her contribution to Joey's answer is muted almost immediately by the very heartbroken look on Monica's face.

She's still not totally convinced that Chandler feels the same about her as her friends seem to think, but she can't stand the idea of him believing she thinks he's inferior or unworthy.

"What do I do?" She asks Rachel miserably. "What do I do?"

"Talk to him." She answers simply. "Just talk to him."

She nods. And makes her way to the door. "Yeah?" She asks, uncertain.

Her friends have risen from their seats and are standing arms around one another looking at her lovingly. She absurdly reminded of her parents on her prom night. "Good luck!" They grin displaying matching thumbs up.

She has her hand on the doorknob when she turns around quickly to give her friends her appreciation, "Thank you, you guys. I really appreciate it." They beam back happily at her as she reproachfully adds, "And Joey, stay out of my underwear drawer."


	6. Chapter 6

Heart in her throat, Monica raises her hand to the door and knocks.

And waits. And waits some more. That's odd. True Joey and Rachel hadn't explicitly said Chandler was in, but they surely wouldn't have sent her off with quite so much fanfare if they'd thought he wasn't home. After knocking again and waiting another moment she's about to give up and head back across the hall when she hears Chandler's voice, low and suspicious, through the door, "Who's there?"

"Chandler? It's me, Monica." She'd initially planned a little romantic declaration to get this conversation started but now she's confused and a little annoyed and just wants to make it through the door. "Let me in!" She demands working the door handle.

"Are you alone?" Chandler asks still not opening the door.

"Am I alone?" Monica asks in exasperation. "Of course I'm alone. Let me in!" She demands again.

She's about to try the handle once more when the door suddenly swings open and a frantic Chandler grabs her roughly by the arm and tugs her into the apartment quickly shutting and locking the door behind him.

"What is going on?" Monica asks in confusion.

"What?" Chandler asks distractedly trying to peer through the peephole of the door out into the hallway.

"Chandler," Monica asks again, this time grabbing him by the arm and roughly spinning him around to face her, "What's going on?"

"I'm kind of avoiding Rachel right now," he admits eyes downcast in embarrassment. "And Joey… and Phoebe and Ross…. and you on occasion. Everyone, really."

"Because of the sex thing?" She asks knowingly.

"Yeah," he affirms plopping himself into one of the loungers in the living room and gesturing at the other for her to do the same.

"God. I could kill Phoebe." He says dragging his hands across his face dramatically before continuing, "It's not enough that I feel awkward and embarrassed most of the time anyhow, now I've got to feel terrible around all my friends in my own home as well?"

"Come on," Monica placates. "It's not so bad." He just raises an eyebrow in challenge at this and she's reminded of how adorable his face is and how much she loves him and oh yeah, why she's here in the first place.

As they sit staring at one another she knows that this is probably the moment to do it, admit her feelings and find out once and for all what's going on between the two of them. She's just about built up the courage to do it when he starts speaking again.

"I know it's stupid, but I'm just not as confident about this kind of stuff as you all are." He lets out a dramatic sigh before lamenting, "Could I be any more pathetic?" He looks so sad and dejected Monica can't help but leave her own seat to sit on the arm of his. It seems silly to make the trip between the loungers for nothing so she uses her new proximity to run her hands through his messy soft hair. Seriously, has it always been this soft?

It's not unusual for them to sit like this, providing each other with physical comfort, but tonight it feels entirely different to her. Her fingertips feel tingly as they move across his scalp and she's hyperaware of where his hand rests on her knee. Feeling emboldened by Joey and Rachel's encouragement from earlier she nestles a bit closer to him and allows her touch to move from his hair to his neckline, nails dragging lightly against his skin. It's all subtle, so subtle she can't even tell if he's noticed the new more intimate touching. But to her it feels borderline erotic.

"You're not pathetic," she assures him hoping that he doesn't notice the slight tremble in her voice. "It's this Janice thing that's pathetic." She reluctantly stops her ministrations to move slightly away from him on the armrest- this will be much easier to get through if she isn't looking into those adorably confused blue eyes of his- "The whole thing isn't even real. It was just Rachel and Joey setting us up."

"Wait, what?" Chandler asks. "Setting us up for what exactly?"

"They thought that if I thought Rachel was interested in you, you know, like that," Monica fumbles here knowing she's just about come to the point of no return in this conversation. Bravely she charges on, "If I thought she wanted you, I'd realize that I did too. Want you I mean."

She hazards a peek now at him behind her, but he isn't looking at her. He's staring down at his hands looking absolutely dumbfounded. She can't say she blames him. It's a lot to process.

"They did what?" He sounds angry which is probably the only reaction of his she hadn't prepared for.

She's about to go into it all again, but he bounces out of his seat and begins pacing back and forth across the small living room. "I can't believe this!" He yells getting more and more worked up. Monica falls back into his recently vacated spot looking helplessly on. She doesn't understand his anger. Sure it was a little devious of their friends but if it helped get them together in the end was that really so wrong? Unless, Chandler doesn't want them to be together. The thought settles in her heart and she'll be devastated just as soon as she's finished being utterly humiliated.

Chandler must notice her crestfallen face because he immediately stops in his tracks to kneel beside the lounger taking her hands in his own.

"Monica," he begins earnestly. "I am so sorry. I swear I had no idea. If I had I would have never let this happen."

Of course he doesn't want this to happen. Why, oh why, did she listen to Rachel and Joey? She just nods sadly trying and failing to stop the tears that have been welling up in her eyes from falling.

"You're crying?" Chandler asks looking like he might start too. "I am going to kill Joey!" He yells suddenly jumping up again. "I really am. Making you cry like this. Who does he think he is, messing with people lives? Messing with you."

He's halfway to the door presumably on his way to find their friend before Monica registers what's happening and stops him with a hand to his forearm. "Chandler, wait!"

"Oh god, Mon. I'm so sorry" He repeats slumping against the kitchen counter looking out at her miserably. "I just can't believe he'd do this."

Monica can't figure out why Chandler's reaction is so angry or why he oddly seems so focused on Joey's participation in this madness but she thinks that she can at least remedy the latter point.

Steering Chandler slowly back to the lounger and perching on the armrest once more, she gently runs her hand along his arm for a moment relishing the closeness that he probably will shy away from after tonight knowing of her unrequited feelings, "Rachel's as much to blame as anyone."

"Trust me," he replies with a mirthless laugh, "This was all Joe."

"Why do you think so?" She asks genuinely curious. She'd gotten the distinct impression next door that Rachel had been the mastermind of this little plot.

Chandler's face goes from angry to embarrassed in a heartbeat. He gives an audible moan and then shifts himself slightly in the chair pulling her down to him so that they are both mostly seated facing one another. Taking her hands once more in his own he begins to address them, studiously avoiding looking at her.

"Okay, promise me you won't hate me or anything like that after I've told you what I'm going to tell you."

As the idea that she could hate him, that she could do anything but love him unconditionally for the rest of time, is beyond ridiculous, she readily promises.

"So I," he groans again a little and looks up briefly to give her an apologetic little smile before returning his gaze to their laps, "I kind of, sort of, have a little thing for you." He pauses a moment bracing himself for a rebuke. She's too in awe to say anything and he must take her silence as encouragement to continue because after a pause he goes on, "And Joey knows about it and I think he thought he was helping me out or something?" He drops their hands now to push the heels of his hands into his eyes. "And I am so sorry he embarrassed you like that! Like someone like you would ever in a million years consider someone like me."

She tries to interrupt him now, because she's decided here and now that it is going to be her life's work to make sure this sweet, kind, loyal, loving man in front of her knows his self-worth, but he holds his hands out imploring her to let him finish.

"I just don't want this to freak you out, or have it ruin our friendship or anything. I couldn't stand that. Maybe you could just forget all about it and I can swallow my feelings and things can go back to normal?" he asks hopefully. "I'm very good at repression, trust me," he gives her a wry smile here and she's pleased to see a little bit of his wit returning even if it is at his own expense.

She's been quiet for all of his speech mostly due to her shock and then subsequent joy at hearing her feelings are reciprocated. But now as he's rambling on and on she can't bear to hear him devaluing himself any longer.

"Chandler," she begins taking his face in her hands so that he stops his ranting and gives her his undivided attention. She smiles a little before saying simply, "It worked."

"It worked?" He asks confused for a moment before the truth of what she says sinks in and he repeats hopefully, "It worked?"

"Yeah," she says. "I like you too." He's flashes her a radiant smile that makes her heart beat faster but he still looks a little doubtful so she leans in and reassures him with a kiss.

Kissing Chandler is like nothing she's ever experienced before. It's this delicious mix of contradictions: new but familiar, tender but passionate, fun but romantic, like Chandler himself. She's just thinking she could kiss him forever when she feels him reluctantly pulling away from her. She lets him break the kiss but holds tightly to his sweater with both hands keeping him near to her.

"We can't do this," he says still staring longingly at her lips.

"Um, I think we just proved we can," Monica scoffs, "and pretty well I might add".

"Obviously I'm crazy about you," Chandler begins, "but I'm going to mess it up, Monica. That's what I do. And then you'll hate me and I'll lose you."

She's never kicked a puppy before but she imagines it would probably look a lot like the way Chandler is looking at her right now. She'd kind of been hoping they'd get to kiss a bit more before he started inevitably freaking out but no such luck. "I'm never going to hate you Chandler," she assures him.

"But I'm so bad at relationships! You know that. We wouldn't stand a chance."

"You just haven't been with the right girl," she says absolutely believing this to be true.

"You certainly are the right girl," Chandler admits rubbing his thumb over her swollen lips. She thinks he's about to kiss her again but instead he just continues his list of faults, "I'm immature."

"You're boyish," she counters moving her arms around his neck.

"Boyish?" He laughs at her choice of words. "Man you really do like me, don't you?"

"Mm-hmm," she hums moving further into his lap. She kisses him deeply and can almost feel the doubt and insecurity flow out of him as he kisses her back. Oddly enough, kissing her best friend doesn't feel strange at all and she marvels that they've waited so, so long to do this.

"If we do this you should also know that I'm probably going to be broke pretty soon too," he says breaking their kiss to stand and hoist her up into his arms.

"Oh yeah, why's that?" She asks not caring in the least.

"Because I'm about to buy Rachel and Joey all the shoes and sandwiches in Manhattan."


	7. Epilogue

**A quick thank you to everyone who read and reviewed this story! I'm so grateful to have found this talented and friendly fandom.**

It's been three glorious days since her and Chandler have become _her and Chandler_ and she doesn't think she's ever been happier. All the things she knew she liked about him are still there but now there are a host of new wonderful things she's learning about 'Chandler the boyfriend' too. How he can be so romantic and playful. How his jokes have gone from self-deprecating to teasing. How happiness makes his whole face light up and his eyes sparkle. She feels drunk and disoriented with her own happiness and wonders for the hundredth time why they've waited so long to do this.

They're sitting around the coffee table at Central Perk, she on the couch and he in the arm chair, not trusting themselves to share a seat (an early attempt at leaving the bedroom was derailed for just that reason) when Joey and Rachel enter looking entirely too proud of themselves.

"Well if it isn't our little lovebirds," Rachel says affectionately gazing down at them and linking her arm with Joey's, again giving Monica the bizarre impression of her parents.

"Looks like they finally made it out of the bedroom," Joey smirks raising his eyebrows suggestively.

"Hey guys," Monica greets ignoring their teasing. "Have you seen Ross at all today?"

It's the one gray cloud in her otherwise sunny life. Though a brief conversation over the phone with Chandler had made her brother aware of the new developments between herself and his best friend, she hasn't talked to Ross herself yet and is both terrified and impatient to get any awkward conversation with him out of the way.

"Nope," Rachel says with a shrug. "Oh, but here comes Phoebe now," she says glancing at the door to the coffee house where their friend is just coming in, "maybe she knows."

"Hey Pheebs," Monica greets as a flustered Phoebe unceremoniously scoots Chandler from his chair to plop herself down in his place, "Have you seen Ross."

Strangely this simple question manages to fluster Phoebe even more. "No!" She answers indignantly. "Why would I have? Why would you even ask me that?" She counters defensively.

Chandler who has sidled next to Monica after his ejection from the armchair now tosses Monica one of his signature faces reserved for when Phoebe is acting particularly Phoebe-esque.

"No reason," Monica says distractedly to a retreating Phoebe who is making her way to the counter, much more interested suddenly in the circles Chandlers finger is drawing on her wrist now that they are seated together once more, than in locating her brother.

"Here he comes," Joey announces snapping Monica rather unpleasantly back to the present time and place. She gives Chandler a little encouraging smile before turning around the back of the couch to greet her sibling, "Hey Ross."

"So this is happening, is it?" Ross begins without preamble waving his finger accusingly at the two of them.

"Ross, I know your upset," Chandler placates, "but it's not like we planned this."

"Sure, sure," Ross answers his voice dripping with sarcasm, "You're telling me that you never thought about my little sister that way and that one day you just," here he mockingly pretends to fall over an invisible barrier, "oops…fell for her?"

"No. I've liked her for forever," he answers eyes locked on Monica's. He gives her a little embarrassed smile before turning back to Ross. "But I would have never done anything about it if she hadn't felt the same way."

"So this is your fault," Ross accuses pointing now at Monica.

"Will you stop it already?" Monica asks in annoyance. It's nice her brother's looking out for her and all but this is ridiculous. "You know Chandler would never hurt me. Besides, if you want someone to blame, blame those guys," she gestures to Rachel and Joey feeling only a little guilty as Ross turns his temper on their friends.

"Whoa. Hold on a minute there," Joey says defensively arms raised against Ross's ire. "If we're blaming anyone here it should be Phoebe." It seems a safe deflection as Phoebe's still away ordering her coffee and is therefore mostly removed from Ross's wrath.

"That's right," Rachel begins patting Joey on the back before continuing. "Phoebe's the one who came up with the Janice plan in the first place. This was all her little scheme, the little…" here Rachel scrambles a bit looking for a good insult, "…schemer!" She ends a little anti-climatically.

"Alright, alright, settle down everyone." Chandler interrupts waiting till everyone has taken their seats. "Ross," he begins addressing his oldest friend, "I promise you my intentions towards your sister are pure. I intend to woo her until she's as crazy about me as I am about her and then we're going to get married and buy a giant house and fill it up with as many Geller-Bing babies as we can handle. Happy?"

Ross doesn't look happy per se, but he does look appeased.

"Rachel and Joey," Chandler continues shifting slightly to address his friends seated around the small café table, "I don't know exactly what it is you said to Monica to get her to agree to give a mess of a man like me a chance but I am eternally grateful."

"Aw. You're welcome man!" Joey looks like he may be getting up for a hug but Rachel gently keeps him seated with a pat on the arm while throwing Chandler and Monica her own warm smile.

"And Pheebs," Chandler begins turning to Phoebe who's just returned to her seat coffee in hand, "I don't know how you ever came up with it, but your plan was genius. If you hadn't pretended to try to get us all to sleep together in the first place, well, Monica and I may never have found out how we felt about each other," he turns to Monica now, "and I wouldn't be able to do this whenever I like." He finishes by giving Monica a kiss.

It's rather chaste compared to what they've been up to the last few days but it earns a catcall from Joey, and "aw" from Rachel, and an "ew" from Ross so they must be doing something right.

"Whoa!" Phoebe exclaims in surprise. "You guys are kissing!" She looks totally shocked.

"Phoebe," Monica laughs at her friend. "Don't act so surprised. This was your plan after all. You know, the Janice thing?"

"Right," Phoebe agrees unconvincingly, "the Janice thing was all a set-up to get you two together. Right?" She sits a moment contemplating before continuing, "Did you hear that Ross? The set-up worked and nobody," she emphasizes this point by shaking her head emphatically, "nobody slept together."

Monica sneaks a peek at her brother now, whose earlier angry appearance has been replaced by a kind of sickly pale. "That's right," he answers just as woodenly, "No one slept together." He pauses a minute before announcing suddenly, "I just remembered I have to go. See you guys." He bounds off the couch and is out the door before they can return his goodbye.

"That was weird," Phoebe laughs awkwardly for a moment before abruptly gathering up her belongings as well. "I also just realized I have to go. Bye." She's halfway to the door before she scampers back and leans over the couch between them adding, "And congratulations on the getting together you guys!" before running out once more.

"Huh," Rachel begins.

"You don't think they…?" Joey trails off looking wonderingly at the others.

"I think they may have," Chandler answers with a grimace.

Monica will have to pry the truth out of Phoebe and Ross at some later date but finds as she looks over at Chandler that she's much more interested in her own sex life right now than in her brother's. "Wanna get out of her too?" She asks seductively.

"You read my mind," he smiles back at her.


End file.
